In recent years, the debate over the best method for choosing judges has captured an increasing amount of attention. In response to the growing interest in this issue, The Federalist Society created www.StateCourtsGuide.com to serve as an impartial source of information and educational materials for those interested in this topic, including state legislators, policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public at large.

As the site explains, there are four main methods of judicial selection: judicial elections (22 states), democratic appointment (5 states), the Missouri Plan (13 states), and some hybrid of those methods (10 states).

More and more legislators in state houses across the country are looking at those options and debating whether their own state should amend or change their method of selection. In just the past two years, several state legislatures (including Florida, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee) have considered legislation that would alter their method of selection, while other states (such as Nebraska) have considered measures to evaluate their method of selection. This spring, legislators in Tennessee received national attention when they voted to pass a constitutional amendment that would change the state’s method from Missouri Plan to democratic appointment. (Note: the amendment has to be approved by both chambers again in the next two-year General Assembly and then put on the ballot and passed by voters in 2014 in order to take effect.)

The purpose of www.StateCourtsGuide.com is to provide a one-stop resource for anyone interested in the subject of state judicial selection.

Its features include:

An interactive map on the landing page, in which one can click on any state to learn how its judges are chosen. There is also basic information for each state’s high court: the number of judges, their terms, how a judge retains his seat on the bench, links to the state high court, breakdown of the makeup of judicial nominating commissions for Missouri Plan and hybrid states, and the relevant constitutional and/or statutory authority for all this information.

The Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy initiatives. Any expressions of opinion are solely those of the author(s). We hope this blog will foster discussion regarding important current issues.